Check out the Pacific Rim and The Amazing Spider-Man concept art by Simon Webber!

Pacific Rim has some brilliant monsters (called Kaiju) and Simon Webber helped design some amazing ones that never made it to the screen.

Bottin is a professional visual effects and makeup effects artist who's worked on Hollywood movies like Thor (2011), Blade II (2002) and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005).

Check out the rest of the images after the jump (click to enlarge)

First, here are some amazing creature designs and renders for Pacific Rim.

Now here are some designs for "The Lizard's" drones in The Amazing Spider-Man.

See more of Simon Webber's work at his CGHub page http://siweb.cghub.com/

Click on the links if you want to see more of Simon Webber's work and Pacific Rim and The Amazing Spider-Man on my blog.

What do you think of the concept art? If you've seen Pacific Rim or The Amazing Spider-Man what did you think?

Official PACIFIC RIM Synopsis
When legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes-a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi)-who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse.

Directed by Guillermo del Toro.

Starring: Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, Ron Perlman, Robert Kazinsky, Max Martini, Clifton Collins, Jr., Burn Gorman, Larry Joe Campbell, Brad William Henke, Diego Klattenhoff 
Cinematography by Guillermo Navarro
Production Design by Andrew Neskoromny, Carol Spier

Official Site: pacificrimmovie.warnerbros.com/

Release date: July 11, 2013

© 2013 Copyright Legendary Pictures

Official The Amazing Spider-Man Synopsis

One of the world's most popular characters is back on the big screen as a new chapter in the Spider-Man legacy is revealed in "The Amazing Spider-Man." Focusing on an untold story that tells a different side of the Peter Parker story, the new film stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Denis Leary, Campbell Scott, Irrfan Khan, with Martin Sheen and Sally Field. The film is directed by Marc Webb from a screenplay written by James Vanderbilt, based on the Marvel Comic Book by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Laura Ziskin, Avi Arad, and Matt Tolmach are producing the film in association with Marvel Entertainment for Columbia Pictures, which will open in theaters everywhere in 3D on July 3, 2012.

"The Amazing Spider-Man" is the story of Peter Parker (Garfield), an outcast high schooler who was abandoned by his parents as a boy, leaving him to be raised by his Uncle Ben (Sheen) and Aunt May (Field). Like most teenagers, Peter is trying to figure out who he is and how he got to be the person he is today. Peter is also finding his way with his first high school crush, Gwen Stacy (Stone), and together, they struggle with love, commitment, and secrets. As Peter discovers a mysterious briefcase that belonged to his father, he begins a quest to understand his parents' disappearance - leading him directly to Oscorp and the lab of Dr. Curt Connors (Ifans), his father's former partner. As Spider-Man is set on a collision course with Connors' alter-ego, The Lizard, Peter will make life-altering choices to use his powers and shape his destiny to become a hero.

Directed by Marc Webb
Starring Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Irrfan Khan

Cinematography by John Schwartzman

Production Design by J. Michael Riva

Official Site: theamazingspiderman.com

Release date: July 3, 2012 (USA)

© 2012 Copyright  Columbia Pictures, Marvel Entertainment, Laura Ziskin Productions

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Check out A.I. Artificial Intelligence concept art by Chris Foss!

Every Friday I feature artwork from a classic of science fiction cinema. This week's "Flashback Friday" post is on A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001).

A.I. is a polarizing film with the critic site Rotten Tomatoes calling it "a curious, not always seamless, amalgamation of Kubrick's chilly bleakness and Spielberg's warm-hearted optimism. [The film] is, in a word, fascinating."  One of the artists who helped develop the films striking visuals for the legendary Stanley Kubrick was Chris Foss.

Christopher "Chris" F. Foss is a professional concept illustrator who's worked on Hollywood films like Dune (1977), Superman (1978) and Alien (1979)

Check out the rest of the images after the jump and find out why he got fired (click to enlarge).


While the film was written, directed and produced by Steven Spielberg, it was originally developed by Stanley Kubrick in the 1970s until his death in the 1990s. A.I. is based on Brian Aldiss' 1969 short story "Super-Toys Last All Summer Long."

Foss started working for Kubrick visualizing the film when the two split for creative differences. According to an interview with Moviefone Foss was frozen out of the project after the two disagreed on one of his paintings.

Kubrick was known as a very meticulous and abrasive director and some found him difficult to work with.
"One day I came back after what we would call a rather good lunch, and Stanley [Kubrick] is standing in my room scowling at the picture, and this has been repainted more times than you've had hot dinners." Foss recalled, "He said, 'This picture's not working,' and I absolutely blew up. I said, 'Stanley, this picture is not working because the concept is not working, because the film is not working, because there is no clear concept!' And he hit the wall and said, 'OK, no clear concept, no clear concept' and walked out. And then the next week when I called to say my car wasn't working, I was late, they said, 'Well actually, Chris, you don't need to come back.'"

These paintings are from a scene where New York is flooded.

See more of Chris Foss' work on the film at ChrisFossArt.com.

Click on the links if you want to see more of Chris Foss' work and A.I. Artificial Intelligence on my blog.

What do you think of the concept art? If you've seen A.I Artificial Intelligence what did you think?

Official A.I Artificial IntelligenceSummary
It is the near future. The polar ice caps have melted as a result of global warming leaving many coastal cities underwater. Man has created machines that are aware of their own existence to help us with the increasing environmental damage that we are doing. One of these machines, a young boy, is the first robot programmed with emotion. Now his "love" is overpowering his robotic programming. He seeks answers as to whether he can ever be more than just a machine. 

Updated ;)

directed by Stanley Kubrick
Cinematography by Janusz Kamiński
Producton Design by Rick Carter

Starring: Haley Joel Osment,  Jude Law,  Frances O'Connor,  Brendan Gleeson,  William Hurt

Release date: June 29, 2001 (USA)

Official Site: http://kubrickfilms.warnerbros.com

© Copyright 2001 Amblin Entertainment,  The Kennedy/Marshall Company, Stanley Kubrick Productions, DreamWorks Distribution (Int.),  Warner Bros., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Bros Pictures. All rights reserved

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Check out Iron Man 3 concept art by Phil Saunders!

Iron Man 3 has been out since May, but one of the main concept artists, Phil Saunders, has just shared concept art from the film. They shed some light on a bunch of ideas that never made it into the film including the original idea for the "Extremis" technology, alternate armor designs and the surprising connection this movie has with Game of Thrones.

Phil Saunders is a professional concept artist who's worked on blockbuster movies like The Avengers (2012), Tron Legacy (2010) and Iron Man (2008).

Check out the rest of the images after the jump (click to enlarge).

All comments are from his CGHub page.

Iron Man 3 MkXLII early concept
"We called this one the 'track suit.' Wonder why. The helmet design from this one was eventually incorporated into Ryan Meinerding's final Mk 42." - Phil Saunders

Iron Man 3 War Machine Mk2 Concept
"Another of several designs I did for the updated War Machine. This one was an attempt at referencing military aircraft rather than tanks for the forms to create a more streamlined but still weaponized suit. The helmet and side intakes on this design were eventually incorporated into Ryan Meinerding's final suit." - Phil Saunders

Iron Man 3 Extremis concept
"An early design for the character of 'Savin.' In early versions of the script Extremis was based on Nanotechnology like in the comic book, and would have constructed some sort of internal armor structure to grant the enhanced soldiers super-strength and near-invulnerability. thematically they would have been a reflection of Tony Stark, wearing their "suits" internally rather than externally. Makeup would have subtly suggested that structure by deforming their skin in a mechanical way. Nikolaj Coster-Waldau from Game of Thrones was considered early on for the role (at that time called Kruger) so our early sketches reflected his likeness." - Phil Saunders

Iron Man 3 MkXV "Sneaky" stealth suit
"Another unused design from Iron Man 1 that I brushed off and revised for IM3's roster of suits. Again I'd never developed a back view, so I finally got to complete a design I'd always liked." - Phil Saunders

Iron Man 3 MkXL "Shotgun" Hypervelocity suit Flying
"A keyframe to show how the Hypervelocity suit would look locked together in flight mode. I always liked the idea of a suit that would lock together into a streamlined airfoil shape for flight. This one would have been lightly armored and lightweight. The 'face' design was meant to suggest a fighter pilot with oxygen mask and visor. An exercise in seeing how far we could push the iconic Iron Man 'face' and still make it recognizable. In a roster of 42 suits you have to find a way to make them as distinct as possible." - Phil Saunders

Iron Man 3 MkXXXVII "Hammerhead" Deep Dive suit
"An unused design from Iron Man 1 I brushed off and revised for IM3's roster of suits. I'd never developed a back view, so much of the focus went there as well as figuring out how to get some articulation out of the bulky concept. The color was ultimately changed by VFX in the final film." - Phil Saunders

See more of Phil Saunders' work at http://www.saunderscreative.com and his CGHub site http://wacomonkey.cghub.com/

Click on the links if you want to see more of Phil Saunders' concept art and Iron Man 3 on my blog.

Via ComicBookMovie.com.Make sure you check out Nailbiter111's fan pagefor more great concept art.

What do you think of the concept art? If you've seen Iron Man 3,what did you think?

Official Iron Man 3 Synopsis
Marvel’s “Iron Man 3” pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy's hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

Starring Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szostak, James Badge Dale with Jon Favreau and Ben Kingsley, Marvel’s “Iron Man 3” is directed by Shane Black from a screenplay by Drew Pearce & Shane Black and is based on Marvel’s iconic Super Hero Iron Man, who first appeared on the pages of “Tales of Suspense” (#39) in 1963 and had his solo comic book debut with “The Invincible Iron Man” (#1) in May of 1968.

“Iron Man 3” is presented by Marvel Studios in association with Paramount Pictures and DMG Entertainment. Marvel Studios’ President Kevin Feige is producing and Jon Favreau, Louis D’Esposito, Charles Newirth, Victoria Alonso, Stephen Broussard, Alan Fine, Stan Lee and Dan Mintz are executive producers. The film releases May 3, 2013, and is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.
(2013-05-03)Release Date: May 3, 2013 (US)

Directed by: Shane Black
Cinematography by John Toll
Production Design by Bill Brzeski
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szostak, James Badge Dale with Jon Favreau and Ben Kingsley
Official website: http://marvel.com/ironman3

©Copyright 2013 Marvel Studios, DMG Entertainment, Walt Disney Studios, Paramount Pictures. All rights reserved

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Check out District 9 concept art by Christian Pearce!

This week I've been featuring a lot of concept art from Neill Blomkamp's Elysium, so I thought I'd share some concept art from his last film: District 9. The aliens look different from the final film, but I love the pop culture references.

Pearce is a professional concept illustrator who's worked on major motion pictures movies like King Kong (2005), Avatar (2009) and Man of Steel (2013).

Check out the rest of the pictures after the jump (click to enlarge).

See more of Christian Pearce's work at http://cargocollective.com/christianpearce.

Click on the links if you want to see more of Christian Pearce's work and District 9 on my blog.

What do you think of the concept art? If you've seen District 9 what did you think?

Official District 9 Summary
From producer Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings Trilogy) and director Neill Blomkamp comes a startlingly original science fiction thriller that "soars on the imagination of its creators" (Peter Travers, Rolling Stone). With stunning special effects and gritty realism, the film plunges us into a world where the aliens have landed... only to be exiled to a slum on the fringes of Johannesburg. Now, one lone human discovers the mysterious secret of the extraterrestrial weapon technology. Hunted and hounded through the bizarre back alleys of an alien shantytown, he will discover what it means to be the ultimate outsider on your own planet.

Directed by Neill Blomkamp
Cinematography by Trent Opaloch
Production Designer Philip Ivey
Starring: Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, David James

Release date: August 14, 2009 (US)

Official Site: http://www.district9movie.com

© Copyright 2009 WingNut Films, QED International, Key Creatives, Wintergreen Productions, TriStar Pictures. All rights reserved

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Check out my review of Elysium: The Art of the Film by Mark Salisbury!*

Elysium: The Art of the Film is a fascinating 176 page behind-the-scenes book about the design of Neill Blomkamp's Elysium (2013) and was published August 6, 2013.

Here's the official description: "From Neill Blomkamp, the director of the acclaimed District 9, comes Elysium, an eagerly awaited sci-fi blockbuster starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster. All will be revealed in Elysium: The Art of the Film, which will feature a Foreword by Blomkamp, and wealth of stunning production art and photos, including the input of legendary designer Syd Mead (Blade Runner, Tron)."

Former Empire Magazine editor Mark Salisbury has written many other books, including Prometheus: The Art of the Film, and Burton on Burton. This one doesn't disappoint.

The logical flow of the designs and the pages makes it an easy book to breeze through or read. Elysium: The Art of the Film breaks the illustrations into two parts: Designs from "near future" Earth and Elysium. Each section has a design that matches the feel of the film.

The foreword by Neill Blomkamp is succinct and fascinating and shows his fascination with the visualization process. He said they did 3,000 distinct pieces of concept art, so picking the ones that show up in the book must have been hard. It's amazing how much concept art they packed into 176 pages including 2 gatefolds with additional satellite and robot designs.

Elysium: The Art of the Filmis a great book and is worth picking up. My only objection is that it doesn't highlight the concept artists besides the legendary Syd Mead. Most of the concept art featured is done by Aaron Beck, Christian Pearce and Leri Greer.

Be warned though! The book has a few spoilers, so make sure you watch the film before getting the book.

Here are some images from the book.


ISBN-10: 1781162476
ISBN-13: 978-1781162477


Official Elysium Summary
In the year 2159 two classes of people exist: the very wealthy who live on a pristine man-made space station called Elysium, and the rest, who live on an overpopulated, ruined Earth. Secretary Rhodes (Jodie Foster), a hard line government official, will stop at nothing to enforce anti-immigration laws and preserve the luxurious lifestyle of the citizens of Elysium. That doesn’t stop the people of Earth from trying to get in, by any means they can. When unlucky Max (Matt Damon) is backed into a corner, he agrees to take on a daunting mission that if successful will not only save his life, but could bring equality to these polarized worlds.

Directed by Neill Blomkamp
Cinematography by Trent Opaloch
Production Designer by Philip Ivey
Starring: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Alice Braga, Diego Luna, Wagner Moura, William Fichtner

Release date: August 9, 2013 (US), August 21, 2013 (UK)

Official Site: http://www.elysium2013-movie.com/

TM & © Copyright 2012 Alphacore, Media Rights Capital, QED International, TriStar Pictures Industries, Inc. All rights reserved

*Disclaimer: Review copy of book provided by Titan Books. This in no way affected the opinions of the author and the opinions do not reflect the opinion of the publishers.

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Check out Elysium concept art by Aaron Beck!

Aaron Beck is a professional concept illustrator at Weta Workshop in Wellington, New Zealand who's worked on Hollywood films like Avatar (2009), District 9 (2009) and the upcoming Mad Max: Fury Road (2014)

Check out the rest of the pictures after the jump (click to enlarge).

Great to talk to you Aaron. Which designs for Elysium did you work on?
The primary elements that made it into the film were the exo-frames for Max and Kruger, some weapons (the chemrail, the AK47 mod), tattoos (including all of Max's), and a bunch of armour designs for other characters. But since Weta Workshop was involved from day one, I also worked on earlier design stages for pretty much everything, including the vehicles, robots, and many other elements that didn't make it into the final script.

Director Neill Blomkamp said that he was creating a future that is "not entirely realistic", but represents his attempt to turn theme into visuals. What was the vision of the future the artists were tasked with?
Neill gave us a brief introduction into the 'haves and have-nots' world at the start of the project, which included a different concept for the realm of the super wealthy, and told us right from the start to not get too bogged down with rationalising some of the larger sci-fi ideas, which were there to inform the story and create a world ripe with opportunities for unique action and drama. It was a lot of fun as a designer to have the two worlds of the film to develop, the gritty slums of 'third world earth' and the clean futurism of Elysium.

Production designer Philip Ivey has cited Syd Mead as a "substantial influence for the film." How did Mead's designs influence the vision of the film?
While we never worked directly with Syd on the film, his influence was certainly there the whole time in that Neill really pushed us to refer to his iconic work as the basis for the wealthy and futuristic world of the Elysium space station. Mead's direct involvement later in the project was I believe a dream come true for many!

What was the most challenging design that you faced and how did you overcome it?
Of the designs that made it into the film the most challenging for me personally were the exo-frames for Max and Kruger. I really wanted to show how dynamic and powerful such a device could be, and decided on the use of pistons to help facilitate that. With pistons you get a lot of easily readable visual cues as you see them extend and contract, showing power and articulation in a way that conventional servo motor driven mechanics can not.

But the real challenges for these two designs were in the construction and realisation of the actual physical prop. Because the exo-frames were bolted into the bones of the characters in the film we couldn't use any straps or other traditional methods of securing the prop to the actor. Instead a lightweight mesh top was worn that had silicone skin attached so that where Max's t-shirt was cut to bolt the exo through to his bones you saw it appear to attach directly to the 'skin'. These sorts of issues and also the difficult challenge of getting the exo to be rugged, lightweight, and not impair the actors movements, were solved by the incredible team here at Weta Workshop.

The job they did was amazing, and it was a privilege to be a part of it.

See more of Aaron Beck's work at http://skul4aface.blogspot.com .

Click on the links if you want to see more of Aaron Beck work and Elysiumon my blog.

And make sure you get a copy of Elysium: The Art of the Film* to see more great concept art from the film. I'll have a review of the book up tomorrow.

What do you think of the storyboards? Have you seen Elysium?

Official Elysium Summary
In the year 2159 two classes of people exist: the very wealthy who live on a pristine man-made space station called Elysium, and the rest, who live on an overpopulated, ruined Earth. Secretary Rhodes (Jodie Foster), a hard line government official, will stop at nothing to enforce anti-immigration laws and preserve the luxurious lifestyle of the citizens of Elysium. That doesn’t stop the people of Earth from trying to get in, by any means they can. When unlucky Max (Matt Damon) is backed into a corner, he agrees to take on a daunting mission that if successful will not only save his life, but could bring equality to these polarized worlds.

Directed by Neill Blomkamp
Cinematography by Trent Opaloch
Production Designer by Philip Ivey
Starring: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Alice Braga, Diego Luna, Wagner Moura, William Fichtner

Release date: August 9, 2013 (US), August 21, 2013 (UK)

Official Site:  http://www.elysium2013-movie.com/

© Copyright 2013 Sony Pictures, Alphacore, Media Rights Capital, QED International, TriStar Pictures. All rights reserved

*A small commission from the sale of items from the links goes towards getting concept art books and Blu-Ray discs for me to review.

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